Climate change and ozone efforts clash

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Delegates at next week's climate change summit in New Delhi will face a head-on collision between efforts to combat climate change and those aimed at protecting the ozone layer.

At issue are hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) introduced to replace chlorofluorocarbons under the 1987 Montreal Protocol, the international agreement on protecting the ozone layer. But the Kyoto Protocol — which aims to limit greenhouse gas emissions — warns against using HFCs, as they have a global-warming potential 1,300 times that of carbon dioxide.

According to a study published in June by Climate Action Network Europe, growing markets for HFCs in developing countries are likely to lead to a tenfold increase in HFC emissions within the next 50 years.